Refrigerating apparatus



C. S. TRIGG REFRIGERATING APPARATUS Filed July 21, 1941 '2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTCR.

Patented M... 18, 1943 UNITED STATES PATENT rorrlca nnrmennsrmo arrAns'rUs Chester s. Trigg, Dayton, Ohio, asslgnor to General Motors Corporation, Dayton, Ohio, a corporation of Delaware Application July 21,1941, Serial No: 403,322 r 9 Claims. (01. 62-122) This invention relates to refrigeration and par ticularly to freezing water in household refrig erators.

I am aware of the fact that ice trays having a grid therein for dividing the interior thereof into ice block compartments have been provided in household refrigerator cabinets for freezing water into a; plurality of ice blocks. The profvision of grids in trays increases the manufacture ing cost of a' refrigerator and also necessitates the ,exertion of considerable force on the part of the user to release a grid from a tray and to break we blocks from the grid. Recently these grids,

have been made with movable walls which when moved relative to oneanoth'er to release ice blocks therefrom cause considerable chipping and breaking of the ice blocks. 1, therefore, contem plate the provision in a household refrigerator cabinet of means for freezing ice blocks therein 12 o and for readily harvesting the ice blocks therefrom without the use of grids disposed in trays. An object of my invention is to provide an improved method of and device for freezing water in a household refrigerator cabinet into ice blocks.-

Another object ofmy invention is to provide means whereby water may be frozen into ice blocks within a household refrigerator cabinet I without employing grids disposed in trays.

-A further object of my invention is to provide means within a sharp freezing compartment of a Fig. 1 is a front view ofa household refrigerator cabinet having my invention incorporated 'therein;

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view of the refrigerator cabinet takenon the line 2-2 of Fig. 1 showing ice blocks being formed on a tray with in a freezing compartment;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged front view ofthe freezing compartment within the refrigerator cabinet showing completely formed ice blocks on a tray therein; I

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary top view'of the water receptacle shown in Figs. 2 and 3; Fig. 5 is a fragmentary top view taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 3 showing the contour of the completely formed ice blocks; and

Fig. 6 is an enlarged sectional view taken on the line i-& of. Fig. 4 showing perforated depresslons in the bottom of the water receptacle. 7

Referring to the drawings, for illustrating my invention, I show in Fig. 1 thereof a household refrigerating apparatus comprising a cabinet l0 having outer metal panels or walls Ii and an inner metallic liner member l2 forming .walls of a food storage chamber H within the cabinet.

. Liner I2 is spaced-from the cabinet outer walls household refrigerator cabinetfor dripping water from a receptacleat spaced apart .points upon a,

' cold tray to. cause freezing of the water and the building up thereof on the tray in the form of a plurality of ice blocks.

In carrying out the foregoing objects, it is a still further and more specific object'of my in-, vention to providea water receptacle within a sharp freezing compartment of 'a household refrigerator which receptacle has a plurality of groups of small perforations in its bottom wall permitting-water therein ,to drip therefrom at.

a substantially predetermined rate when a cold,

surface of a removable tray spaced below the receptacle whereby the water is precooled in its invention will bejapparent from the following description. reference beinghad to the accom- "with cabinet Iii." The refrigerant liquefying and .l i and this space is fllled'with any suitable or desirable insulating material ll (see Fig. 2). The front metal wall ll .of cabinet II is provided with an' opening which registers with an opening in the liner i2 to provide an access opening to the food storage chamber ll. "An insulated door structure I! normally closes the access opening of chamber ll. Wallsll-ofcabinet I] extend downwardly beyond the bottom of liner l2 to form a machine compartment in the lower portion of the cabinet. The machine compartment may have a front openingnormsllyclosed by a door I! and this machine compartment is adapted to house a refrigerant liquefylne' and circulating unit of a closed refrigerating system, ted

circulating-unit (not'shpwn) is connected with an evaporator 2| mountedin the food compartment l4 and the refrigerating eflect produced by vaporator 2| theinterior of compartment M as isconventional in the art. Evaporator 2|,

. is preferably of the sheet metal typeand its double metal walls are formed into a umpe to provide a bottom wall 22 and upri ht side walls 23 of asharp freezing compartment 24 wizhin the food chamber II. The evaporator 2| issupported bymounting clipsorthelike licloselyadjacent the top portion ofliner llsothatthispor. tion of the liner the m side walls to form the top wall of the freezing compartment 24. A metal plate 21 is secured to the back of evaporator 2| and a door 28 is pivotally mounted onthe' front of evaporator 2| to complete the enclosure of the sharp freezing compartment 24 (see Fig. 2). Refrigerant evaporated in the passageways provided between the double walls of evaporator 2| cools the food storage chamber I4 and the refrigerating effect of the evaporator maintains the interior of the freezing compartment enclosure 24 below Water freezing temperatures. I

I mount a. non-metallic pan or receptacle 3| within compartment 24 a substantial distance above the bottom wall 22 of evaporator 2| and upon supports 32 secured to the evaporator side walls. A flat metal tray member 33 is removably I positioned within the ,compartment 24 and supported upon the evaporator bottom wall 22. The intimate thermal contact of tray member 33 with a wall of evaporator 2| causes cooling of the tray 33 to a temperature below 32 F. or to a temperature substantially corresponding to the low tem-'- perature of the evaporator walls. The bottom wall 34 of receptacle 3| is provided with a plurality of depressions or downwardly extending portions 36 which are perforated as at 31 to provide small holes in the receptacle bottom (see Figs. 4 and 6). In practicing my invention, I have found that the depressions or portions 36 prevent water dripping from receptacle 3|, in a manner and for the purpose to be presently described, from flowing horizontally along the bottom of the receptacle. Therefore, the depressions or portions 36 immediately adjacent the holes of perforations 3'! provide definite paths of water drippage from the receptacle 3|. The formation of these definite paths of water drippage is advantageous in that the perforated depressions may be arranged in spaced apart groups of five each (see Fig. 4) over the area of the bottom surface of receptacle 3| so as to render the device capable 'of forming separated ice blocks on tray 33. Also in practicing my invention, I have found that the perforations or holes 31 in the bottom wall of receptacle 3| should be of a diameter of the receptacle in accordance with thenormal temperature maintained by an evaporator within a household refrigerator cabinet and in accordance with a certain rate of drippage desired over a predetermined required period of time to cause emptying of the receptacle 3|.

Having described the structural elements and the relation thereof to one another of the device disclosed to carry out my invention, I will now proceed to describe the function thereof In order to freeze water into blocks of ice with the device disclosed and without the use of complicated expensive grid structures, the receptacle 3| may be filled with water at the sink and placed into the freezin compartment 24 or the receptacle 3| may be supported within compartment 24 and filled as the bottom wall of evaporator 2|. Water placed in receptacle 3| is relatively warm compared to the temperature of evaporator 2| and/or compartment 24 and rapid conduction of heatfrom the water to walls of the evaporator is prevented by making the receptacle 3| of non-metallic material, as hereinabove stated, to thereby insure that all the water will drip from the receptacle before the temperature of water therein can be lowered to a point to cause freezing thereof. Water dripping from the receptacle 3| is chilled during its fall through the cold air within the sharp freezing compartment 24 toward tray member 33 and.this precooling of the water hastens freezing when the drops of water strike the cold surface of tray 33. Due to the grouping of the perforations or holes 3! in the bottom wall of receptacle 3| in spaced apart groups of five each, there is provided definite paths of drippage of the water and when the water strikes tray 33 it begins to build upwardly in five separate frozen masses. These five frozen masses soon overlap one another and are moulded or frozen together by the time the water level has fallen substantially'half way in receptacle 3| to thereby start the formation of blocks of ice as shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings. Further drippage of water upon the ice blocks being formed on tray 33 causes the water to freeze thereon and continue the building up of separate ice blocks. Due to the low temperature of air within the freezing compartment 24 and the precooling of water to a point closely approximating a freezing temperature as it drops through this cold air, the precooled water will freeze when it strikes the ice blocks on tray 33. This precooling feature along with proper spacing of the groups of depressions 36 and openings 31 therein, as disclosed, insures that further drippage of water from receptacle 3| will freeze upon the ice blocks before the water can flow onto tray 33 and mold the ice blocks to one another. The ice blocks attain a predetermined height and a somewhat irregular form when the water in receptacle 3| is emptied as shown in Figs. 3 and 5 of the drawings. To harvest the ice blocks from the sharp freezing compartment 24, tray 33 is removed from evaporator 2| and twisted to thereby break the bond between the ice blocks and the tray and permit the loosened ice blocks to be removed from the tray.

' duces ice blocks that are sufliciently uniform and preferably of such size as to permit their insertion into tall glasses. In my improved device the ice blocks can be readily removed with a minimum amount of effort on the part of the user of the refrigerator and without chipping or cracking the ice blocks.

While the form of embodiment of the invention as herein disclosed, constitutes a preferred form, it is to be understood that other'forms might be adopted, all coming within the scope of the claims which'follow.

What is claimed is as follows:

1. A refrigerating apparatus comprising in combination, a cabinet provided with a food storage chamber having an evaporator of a refrigerq ating system therein, said evaporator being formed to provide walls of a freezing compartment within said chamber, a receptacle within said compartment adapted to receivdwater to be frozen, a removable member withinfsaid compartment disposed below said receptacle, said 4 removable member being normally disposed in intimate thermal contact with a wall portion of said evaporator and cooled thereby to a temperature below freezing, said receptacle having a plua storage chamber having an evaporator of a refrigerating system therein, said evaporator being formed to provide walls of a freezing compartment within said chamber, a receptacle with in said compartment adapted to receive water to be frozen, a removable member within said compartment disposed below said receptacle, said removable member being normally disposed in inin drips onto said tray, and the perforations of each of said groups thereof being so spaced apart as to cause the water dripping from said receptacle, upon freezing, to build upon said metal tray in the form of a plurality of separated ice blocks.

5. A refrigerating apparatus comprising in combination, a cabinet provided with a food storage chamber having an evaporator of a refrigerating system therein, said evaporator being formed to provide a bottom wall and a timate thermal contact with a wall portion of said evaporator and cooled thereby to a temperature below freezing, said receptacle having a plurality of groups of perforations in its bottom wall through which water received therein drips onto said member, and the perforations of each of said groups thereof being so spaced apart as to cause the water dripping from said receptacle, upon freezing, to build up on said member in the form of a plurality of separated ice blocks.

3. A refrigerating apparatus comprising in combination, a cabinet provided with a-food storage chamber having an evaporator of a refrigerating system therein, said, evaporator being formed to provide a bottomwall and a plurality plurality of upright walls of a freezing compartment within said chamber, a relatively long wide non-metallic receptacle supported within said compartment a substantial distance above the bottom wall thereof and adapted to receive water to be frozen, a relatively flat metal tray removably supported within said compartment upon the bottom wall of said evaporator whereby the tray is cooled to a temperature below freezing, said receptacle having a plurality of depressions in its bottom wall and each of the depressions being perforated to permit waterreceived in said receptacle to drip onto said tray,,

inetwhich comprises, dripping water from a reof other walls of a freezing "compartment within said chamber, a non-metallic receptacle within said compartment disposed above the bottom wall thereof and adapted to receive water to be frozen, a removable metal tray within said compartment and supported upon the bottom wall of said evaporator whereby the tray is cooled to a temperature below freezing, said receptacle having a plurality of perforations in its bottom wall through which water received therein drips onto saidv tray, and said perforations being so spaced apart as to cause the water dripping from said inet which comprises, dripping water at spaced receptacle, upon freezing, to build up on'said metal tray in the form of a plurality of ice blocks.

4. A refrigerating apparatus comprising in combinatioma cabinet provided with a food storage chamber having an evaporator of a refrigerating system therein, said evaporator being.

formed'to provide a bottom wall and a plurality of other walls of a freezing compartment within said chamber, a non-metallic receptacle within said compartment disposed above the bottom wall thereof and adapted to receive water to be frozen, a removable metal tray within said'compartment and supportedupon the bottom wall of said evaporator whereby the tray is cooled to a temperature below freezing, said receptacle having a plurality of groups of perforations in its bottom wall through which water received there apart points from a receptacle in the freezing compartment to precool the water, and receiving the drops of precooled water on a tray in the.

freezing compartment to cause freezing and building up thereof on the tray in the form of separated ice blocks.

8. The method of producing blocks of ice in a compartment which comprises, dripping water from a source thereof at spaced apart points within the compartment upon a horizontally disposed surface and freezing the water to cause same to build upon the surface in the form of a plurality of ice blocks.

9. A refrigerating apparatus comprising in combination, a cabinet having a compartment therein, means associated with said compartment for receiving water, said means having perfora-. tions infla wall thereof to permit water to drip therefrom in said compartment, said apparatus including a surface beneath said means maintained below 32 F. and upon which the water drips, and said perforations being so spaced apart as to cause the water dripping from said means,

- upon freezing, to build up on said surface in the ice blocks. 

